Cross-cultural international weddings are more common today than every before. One of the most recently glamorous events was that of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
What traditions did you discover when you ventured into a cross-cultural wedding? Share in the comments below, we would love to hear from you.
Engagement
A faux-paux that I actually committed was in Brazil when I didn’t know that you invited friends and family and had a group engagement party rather than an intimate meal with an ‘on your knees’ ring presentation and proposal. Read this account from an Aussie marrying an American.
Wedding
Get a glimpse into the expat wedding in Japan that this couple recently pulled off. When only one of you is the ‘alien’ at the wedding it presents challenges to the ‘native’ spouse to help guide them through the process with patience. If you are going to do a destination wedding as an expat then you have cultural barriers to overcome and have fewer guests to entertain. Read this post about a wedding in Bulgaria to heighten your senses.
Planners
Many are using wedding planners and it can get much bigger than you expect before you realize it. Advice, go small and simple. Yes, I know that culturally that may not be possible.
In Kenya, you would want to call Expat Events (or even chat with them on their website).
In the Netherlands, are these your experts.
Traditions
In some traditions, the groom has a chocolate cake. Some credit the British for this tradition and Prince Harry did have one but it paled in comparison to the tiered white cake. My own cake in Brazil was a delicious liquor filled chocolate masterpiece.
Honeymoon
Where to go you? Where can you go legally? Do you travel far at all or delay until a future time?
Legalities
Do you have to have the religious ceremony and a government ceremony for it to be legal? Will you only do the small governmental event rather than go through with all the pomp-and-circumstance. In the Netherlands, you might want to seek legal counsel from this lady.
